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Alignments
Category:Glossary Alignments are a reference to a person's moral affiliations/beliefs, best described using a chart (like in D&D) to show their good/evil and law/chaos tendencies; for example, a person who is Neutral Good stands in the middle of Law and Chaos in their views, and at the Good end in the Good/Evil spectrum. Here is a chart of how the alignments works: Note: This is just a guideline for you, the reader, to get a better idea of what a person's moral inclinations are; no one in Ehrdi refers to themselves or another as "Lawful Evil," or "Chaotic Good" and so on. Also, alignments are just general inclinations; no one acts according to their general alignment all the time, and can sometimes do things very out of their alignment during times of stress, changes of world perception, or other such incidents. =Alignment Descriptions= The descriptions on each alignment below are as explained in Dungeons and Dragons. Lawful Good A lawful good character acts as a good person is expected or required to act. They tell the truth, keep their word, help those in need, and speak out against injustice. A lawful good character hates to see the guilty go unpunished. They combine a commitment to oppose evil with the discipline to fight relentlessly. Some feel that lawful good is the best alignment one can be because it combines honor and compassion. Neutral Good A neutral good character does the best that a good person can do and is devoted to helping others. These characters believe that a balance of forces is important, but that the concerns of law and chaos do not moderate the need for good. Since the universe is vast and contains many creatures striving for different goals, a determined pursuit of good will not upset the balance; it may even maintain it. If fostering good means supporting organized society, then that is what must be done. If good can only come about through the overthrow of existing social order, so be it. Social structure itself has no innate value to them. A Neutral good character might work with kings and magistrates but does not feel beholden to them. A baron who violates the orders of his king to destroy something he sees as evil is a good example of a neutral good character Chaotic Good A chaotic good character acts as his conscience directs him with little regard for what others expect of him. Chaotic good characters are strong individualists marked by a streak of kindness and benevolence. They believe in all the virtues of goodness and right, but they have little use for laws and regulations. He hates it when people try to intimidate others and tell them what to do. Their actions are guided by their own moral compass which, although good, may not always be in perfect agreement with the rest of society. A brave frontiersman forever moving on as settlers follow in his wake is an example of a chaotic good character. Lawful Neutral A lawful neutral character acts as law, tradition, or a personal code directs her. Order and organization are paramount to her. She may believe in personal order and live by a code or standard, or she may believe in order for all and favor a strong, organized government. True Neutral A neutral character does what seems to be a good idea. She doesn't feel strongly one way or the other when it comes to good vs. evil or law vs. chaos. Most neutral characters exhibit a lack of conviction or bias rather than a commitment to neutrality. Such a character thinks of good as better than evil—after all, she would rather have good neighbors and rulers than evil ones. Still, she is not personally committed to upholding good in any abstract or universal way. Some neutral characters, on the other hand, commit themselves philosophically to neutrality. They see good, evil, law, and chaos as prejudices and dangerous extremes. They advocate the middle way of neutrality as the best, most balanced road in the long run. They believe in the ultimate balance of forces, and they refuse to see actions as either good or evil. Since the majority of people in the world make judgments, true neutral characters are extremely rare. True neutrals do their best to avoid siding wih forces of either good or evil, law or chaos. It is their duty to see that all of these forces remain in balanced contention. Chaotic Neutral A chaotic neutral character follows his whims. He is an individualist first and last. He values his own liberty but doesn't strive to protect others' freedom. He avoids authority, resents restrictions, and challenges traditions. A chaotic neutral character does not intentionally disrupt organizations as part of a campaign of anarchy. To do so, he would have to be motivated either by good (and a desire to liberate others) or evil (and a desire to make those different from himself suffer). A chaotic neutral character may be unpredictable, but his behavior is not totally random. He is not as likely to jump off a bridge as to cross it. Lawful Evil A lawful evil villain methodically takes what he wants within the limits of his code of conduct without regard for whom it hurts. He cares about tradition, loyalty, and order but not about freedom, dignity, or life. He plays by the rules but without mercy or compassion. He is comfortable in a hierarchy and would like to rule, but is willing to serve. He condemns others not according to their actions but according to race, religion, homeland, or social rank. He is loath to break laws or promises. This reluctance comes partly from his nature and partly because he depends on order to protect himself from those who oppose him on moral grounds. Some lawful evil villains have particular taboos, such as not killing in cold blood (but having underlings do it) or not letting children come to harm (if it can be helped). They imagine that these compunctions put them above unprincipled villains. Neutral Evil A neutral evil villain does whatever she can get away with. She is out for herself, pure and simple. She sheds no tears for those she kills, whether for profit, sport, or convenience. She has no love of order and holds no illusion that following laws, traditions, or codes would make her any better or more noble. On the other hand, she doesn't have the restless nature or love of conflict that a chaotic evil villain has. Chaotic Evil These characters are the bane of all that is good and organized. Chaotic evil characters are motivated by the desire for personal gain and pleasure and does whatever his greed, hatred, and lust for destruction drive him to do. He is hot-tempered, vicious, arbitrarily violent, and unpredictable. They see absolutley nothing wrong with taking whatever they want by whatever means possible. Laws and governments are the tools of weaklings unable to fend for themselves. The strong have the right to take what they want, and the weak are there to be exploited. Bloodthirsty buccaneers and monsters of low intelligence are fine examples of chaotic evil personalities. If he is simply out for whatever he can get, he is ruthless and brutal. Otherwise if he is committed to the spread of evil and chaos, he is even worse.